How I Got Back Into Writing After Being in a Slump (Real Strategies That Actually Worked)
by The Book Pup on April 3, 2026
Let's talk about something I don't discuss much: I went through a writing slump that lasted YEARS.
Not a "I don't feel inspired today" slump. A "I can't write a single sentence without hating it" slump. A "maybe I'm just not a writer anymore" slump.
Every time I opened a blank document, I'd freeze. Every idea felt stupid. Every sentence I managed to write felt wrong. So I stopped trying.
For months, I told myself I'd get back to it "when inspiration struck." Spoiler alert: inspiration doesn't strike when you're avoiding writing. It strikes when you're actively engaging with words, even badly.
Here's how I finally climbed out of that slump - not through waiting for motivation, but through tiny, low-pressure experiments that made writing feel safe and fun again.
If you're in a writing slump right now, this post is for you.
What My Writing Slump Looked Like
Before we get into solutions, let me be honest about how bad it was:
Symptoms of my slump:
- Couldn't finish a single piece of writing, even a 1 page story
- Every idea felt "not good enough"
- Writing felt like a chore
- Avoided writing completely rather than write badly
Sound familiar?
The worst part wasn't the lack of output - it was losing the JOY of writing. Writing used to be fun, an escape, something I WANTED to do. Suddenly it was pressure and anxiety.
Strategy 1: Writing Drills (No Pressure, Just Practice)
What they are: Short, timed exercises with specific constraints. Like scales for musicians or stretches for athletes.
Why they worked: No pressure to create something "good."
My Favorite Writing Drills:
The 5-Minute Sprint:
- Set timer for 5 minutes
- Write continuously, don't stop
- Don't edit, don't think, just WRITE
- It can be garbage - that's the point
The 50-Word Story:
- Tell a complete story in exactly 50 words
- Forces you to be concise
- Low commitment (it's just 50 words!)
- You can finish something in 10 minutes
The Dialogue-Only Scene:
- Write a conversation with NO description or dialogue tags
- Just the words people say
- Helps you hear character voices
- Removes pressure to describe perfectly
Why drills helped me: I wasn't trying to write "my novel" or "a good story." I was just practicing. The low stakes made it safe to be bad. And slowly, being bad turned into being okay, which turned into being decent again.
Try this: Do one 5-minute drill daily for a week.
Strategy 2: Using First Lines For Practices (With a Twist)
What it is: Taking opening lines from 3 different books you love and put them all together, using them as a writing prompt, then taking the stories in a completely different direction.
Why it worked: The hardest part of writing is starting.
How I Did This:
Step 1: Grabbed 3 different books from my shelf and read the first line
Step 2: Copied those exact lines
Step 3: Wrote the next sentence, taking it somewhere totally different
Step 4: Kept going for 10-20 minutes
Why this worked:
- Removed the blank page terror
- Great first lines inspired me
- No pressure to match the original book
- Felt like playing rather than "real writing"
Try this: Open three random books, read their first lines, pick the most interesting one, and write for 15 minutes.
Note: This is only for practice drills. Don't use exact words or lines from a book for books you want to publish, that's somebody else's work!
Strategy 3: Book Sentence Poetry
What it is: Taking random sentences from books and rearranging them into poems.
Why it worked: I was creating something without having to generate original words. It was like a word collage.
How I Did This:
Step 1: Opened 5-6 books to random pages
Step 2: Picked one interesting sentence from each
Step 3: Arranged them in an order that created meaning or feeling
Step 4: Adjusted line breaks and maybe added small connecting words
Why this worked:
- Felt like creating without the pressure of originality
- Helped me see how sentences could be rearranged
- Made me pay attention to rhythm and flow
- Created something complete in 20 minutes
Try this: Grab 5 books, pull one sentence from each, see what you can create.
Note: This is only for practice drills. Don't use exact words or lines from a book for books you want to publish, that's somebody else's work!
Strategy 4: Pinterest Prompt Deep Dives
What it is: Finding writing prompts on Pinterest and actually DOING them instead of just saving them.
Why it worked: External inspiration + specific direction = easier to start.
My Pinterest Strategy:
Step 1: Searched "writing prompts" on Pinterest
Step 3: Set a rule: Write something for ONE prompt before scrolling again
Step 4: Wrote for 15-30 minutes on that prompt
No pressure version: Just wrote 3 sentences responding to the prompt. That's it. That counted as writing.
Why this worked:
- Visual prompts (especially images) sparked creativity
- Huge variety meant I could find something that clicked
- Community aspect (seeing others use prompts)
Try this: Set a timer for 10 minutes and write on ONE Pinterest prompt. Just one. See what happens.
Strategy 5: BuzzFeed Randomness
What it is: Using random BuzzFeed articles/quizzes as writing inspiration.
Why it worked: The absurdity made it FUN. I stopped taking writing so seriously.
What I Did:
Random headline prompts: Turned BuzzFeed headlines into writing prompts
- "21 Dogs That Are Having A Worse Day Than You" → wrote a story where that's literally true in a fantasy world
- "Which Harry Potter Character Are You?" → wrote from that character's POV
- "Things Only People Who [X] Understand" → created a character defined by that specific trait
Quiz result stories: Took a personality quiz and wrote a character exactly matching that result
Why this worked:
- Ridiculous prompts = no pressure
- Made me laugh, which made writing fun again
- Forced creative problem-solving
- Reminded me writing doesn't have to be SERIOUS
Try this: Go to BuzzFeed, click on a random article, and turn it into a 200-word story. Embrace the weirdness.
Strategy 6: Rewriting (Yes, Really)
What it is: Literally rewriting passages from books I love.
What Happened When I Did This:
Step 1: Found a paragraph of beautiful writing
Step 2: Retyped it word-for-word
Step 3: Paid attention to sentence structure, rhythm, word choice
Step 4: Tried to write my own paragraph in a different style
What I learned:
- How authors build sentences
- Rhythm and pacing techniques
- Word choice and voice
- Paragraph structure
- Transition methods
Why this worked:
- No creative pressure (just copying)
- Learned by doing rather than reading about writing
- Felt like training wheels
- Built muscle memory for writing flow
Try this: Copy one page from your favorite book. Then write one original paragraph inspired by their style.
Note: This is only for practice drills. Don't use exact words or lines from a book for books you want to publish, that's somebody else's work!
Strategy 7: Collaborative Writing Games
What it is: Playing writing games with friends or online communities.
Why it worked: Made writing social and fun instead of solitary and serious.
Games That Helped:
Exquisite Corpse:
- Person A writes a sentence, folds paper so only last word shows
- Person B continues from that word
- Creates wild, unpredictable stories
- Can do this via text/messaging
Three-Word Story:
- Each person adds exactly three words
- Story builds collaboratively
- Absurd results guaranteed
- Create a character
- Friends ask them questions
- Answer in character voice
- Develops character without writing full scenes
Why this worked:
- No pressure (it's just a game!)
- Someone else provided structure
- Laughing while writing healed something
- Reminded me writing can be playful
What Actually Got Me Writing Again
The honest truth: It wasn't one strategy. It was consistently doing SOMETHING writing-adjacent, even for 5 minutes, without judgment.
What worked:
- Starting ridiculously small (50 words, 5 minutes)
- Making it playful, not serious
- External prompts (Pinterest, books, BuzzFeed)
- Removing pressure to be good
- Hyping myself up by looking at what I love about writing
What didn't work:
- Waiting for inspiration
- Beating myself up for not writing
- Trying to force "serious" writing
- Comparing myself to other writers
- Setting big goals I couldn't meet
The turning point: When I stopped trying to "be a writer" and just played with words again. When I gave myself permission to be bad. When I made it about joy, not output.
Your Action Plan: Getting Out of Your Slump
Week 1: Lower the stakes
- Do 5-minute writing drills daily
- Don't share, don't edit, don't judge
- Just write ANYTHING
Week 2: External inspiration
- Use prompts from Pinterest, books, BuzzFeed
- Let others give you the ideas
- Just fill in the blanks
Week 3: Play
- Try the ridiculous strategies
- Make it fun, not serious
- Laugh at bad writing
- Enjoy the process
Week 4: Build momentum
- Keep doing what's working
- Gradually increase time/complexity
- Still no judgment allowed
- Celebrate showing up
The goal isn't publishing quality work. The goal is reconnecting with writing.
What I Learned From My Writing Slump
Slumps are normal. Every writer experiences them.
Pressure kills creativity. The more I forced it, the worse it got.
Play heals. Making writing fun again healed what perfectionism broke.
Small is powerful. 5 minutes counts. 50 words counts. It all counts.
Process > Product. Focus on enjoying writing, not producing good writing.
For Writers in Slumps Right Now
You're not alone. Writing slumps feel isolating, but they're universal.
It's temporary. You will write again. The joy will return.
Start smaller than feels meaningful. Write one sentence. That's enough for today.
Make it fun. The minute it feels like obligation, stop and try something playful.
Happy writing (or happy returning to writing), and remember: bad writing is better than no writing. ✍️
The Book Pup
P.S. If you have any more strategies that worked for you, tell me about them! I'm curious to know what other writer's did to get out of their slumps!
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